Massachusetts last in nationwide job-creation study

Despite its reputation as a leader in the ``innovation economy,'' Massachusetts ranked second-to-last in a nationwide study on job creation released today.

Peter Reuell

Despite its reputation as a leader in the ``innovation economy,'' Massachusetts ranked second-to-last in a nationwide study on job creation released today.

The study, conducted by MassINC and the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University, found Massachusetts produced fewer new jobs between 2001 and 2006 than every other state except Michigan.

Over the five years of the study, the state lost about 3.6 percent of its jobs, with large cities accounting for a sizable portion of the losses. As a group, the state's top 10 cities lost 6.6 percent of their jobs.

``While the country has generated something like 30 million jobs, we've got less than 100,000 of those,'' Andy Sum, the report's author, said in a conference call this week. ``We've had no labor force growth in the last five years.''

The stagnation in job growth has led to a similar stagnation in tax revenues, leaving the state struggling with a host of fiscal problems.

``In the absence of creating new jobs, we cannot solve the fiscal problems of this state,'' said Dana Ansel, MassINC's director of research. ``We believe the job generation issue is one that really belongs at the forefront.''

If the job creation picture painted by the study is a dim one statewide, it is darkest when focused on Middlesex County.

Between 2001 and 2006, the study found, the county lost nearly 7.5 percent of its jobs, or about 60,000 positions.

While some communities, such as Hopkinton, Southborough and Sudbury, were able to add jobs, and others such as Westborough, saw essentially no change, others saw huge rates of job losses.

In Waltham alone, researchers found, nearly 10,000 jobs, a decrease of more than 15 percent, disappeared over the five years of the study.

For Ansel, such findings aren't surprising.

``The places that got hit the hardest were the state's biggest cities, and then the tech centers,'' she said.

With a huge number of technology companies and a highly skilled work force, the state thrived during the tech boom, Ansel said. When the market faltered in the late 1990s, however, the job market followed suit.

``A greater part of our job share was based on high tech,'' she said. ``Our high tech losses really explain a lot of what's happened to our state. When high tech was doing so well, we obviously prospered, but as soon as it was hit,'' the picture changed.

Ansel warned the state against making a similar mistake by relying too heavily on biotechnology to create new jobs.

``Biotech is great, it's done great, it's one of the few places we've added jobs,'' she said. ``(But) biotech can't do it alone.

``It's still less than three percent of our economy. You cannot create a robust economy based on a sector like that. We should be nourishing it. I certainly take that as the lesson of high tech. You need broad-based growth.''

Though the report released today paints a dark picture for communities like Waltham, Caroline Connor, executive director of the 128 Business Council said she believes there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

``What we're seeing now is a huge amount of commercial growth in Waltham as well as a greater variety of companies that are moving into the Waltham area,'' she said.

While she admits the period following the dot-com bubble was dark, Connor believes the city can still attract good employers and good jobs.

``The population of Waltham continues to double during the course of the day,'' she said. ``More than 54,000 people commute into Waltham and there's still 172,000 cars a day on Rte. 128.''

What's more, she said, an estimated 4 to 5 million square feet of commercial and retail space are expected to come online in the next two years.

``That says, at least on the commercial side, they don't see a real downturn,'' she said.

One reason the region has suffered when it comes to job losses, MetroWestChamber of Commerce President Ted Welte said, is the high cost of living, which has driven thousands of young workers out of the state.

``I think it trends with the loss of the younger workers that have been leaving the state,'' he said. ``Our concern all along has been if we can't find a way to keep some of these younger workers in the work force here, we're going to be challenged to keep our companies here.''

The study ``should be a bright, red light bulb over the administration's head,'' said Susanne Morreale-Leeber, president and CEO of the Marlborough Regional Chamber of Commerce. ``It should send a very loud message to the administration.''